TJ’s Insights

I love technology, but it should never distract your audience away from you and your message. That’s why I urge people not to let their PowerPoint slides dominate their presentations. It’s also why video and music should be used sparingly in most presentations. Even your choice of microphone can help or hinder your audience.

A few public speakers choose to use theatrical-style microphones that hang from their ear and go all the way to their mouth. The problem for the typical business speaker in a suit with one of these microphones is that he or she looks like a cast reject from Broadway’s “Rent,” or worse, Madonna wearing a large cone-shaped Bra circa 1989. This type of microphone is just too ostentatious.

One of the most challenging situations any speaker will ever face is speaking in front of an entire coliseum of people, while standing in the middle, surrounded by audience members on all four sides of a platform. Various motivational speaking seminar companies structure events this way to give the maximum number of people front row seats and seats that are close to the speaker.

The challenge for the speaker is that you must now have your back to the audience at any one time. Several large Jumbotron TV screens usually display the speaker’s face and front so that no matter where someone sits, he or she can see the speaker’s face.

Here is the situation: you are giving a presentation that involves a lot of data within a fixed time period, say 20-30 minutes. You are one of five companies giving a presentation. This is a “bake-off” where only one will be selected by the client/audience members. You aren’t allowed to use PowerPoint. Handouts are expected.

What do you do?

What do you do if you want to use a part of a movie, TV show or newspaper article in a speech or presentation you are giving?

Here is an example of what you can’t do:

Show an Anthony Robbins motivational speaking video in its entirety, and charge admission for people to watch it.
In this case, you are infringing on Robbins’ right to make money off of his intellectual property. You didn’t get permission. And you are making money off of the video that, presumably, is money Robbins could be making.

Most people are taught at an early age not to be boastful (except for Donald Trump). We are taught that it is polite to be self-effacing, to give other people credit. We are supposed to let our “actions speak louder than our words.”

Ya, ya, ya…all good advice, BUT…

I am constantly amazed at how often I meet people who are in business for themselves and yet they can’t really tell me what they do beyond some vague generality such as “I’m in PR” or “I do finance.”

I have to ask “PR for what?”

Sometimes media gurus like me get too fancy. We teach clients all sorts of subtle ways to bridge back to message points and to weave message points subtly into an answer. But sometimes the best approach is to be direct-and I mean really direct.

If you are walking into a morning local TV talk show and you have three specific message points, then have them written down as three succinct sentences on a note card. Now you’ve probably heard that before, but here’s the wrinkle. Hand one copy of the card to the producer of the show and say, “Here are the three most important points that I think would be helpful and interesting to your audience today.”

Imagine a young man in Seminary planning a career in the ministry. He does well in most classes, earning A’s and B’s. But then he gets a C in public speaking class.

Oh no! What does this mean? Perhaps he should plan a career as an academic or run a non-profit church-funded relief program. But with such mediocre speaking skills as a full-fledged adult in his 20’s, being a primary pastor and having to give a sermon in front of a crowd each Sunday morning didn’t seem like an ideal career move for the C-level speaking student.

There are some political leaders who have the gift of gab; they sparkle on camera, whether they are giving a speech or being interviewed. Think Regan, Clinton or Blair.

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) is not one of those. Schumer has the style, charm and like-ability of your least favorite high school chemistry teacher who always made sure to give you extra homework on the Friday before a holiday weekend. But what Schumer lacks in natural charm, charisma, and good looks, he more than makes up for through sheer hard work and tenacity when it comes to his media presence.

Telling “jokes” is usually a bad idea for most speakers, but getting laughs is great for any presenter. Isn’t this contradictory?

The problem with jokes is that they seemed forced and they scream out to the audience “Hey, I’m trying to be funny, so you’d better laugh now!!!” And nobody likes to be told to laugh on demand.

But a speaker can get generate lots of laughs without ever telling a joke. The key to humor is simply being able to pounce quickly on the absurdity of any situation. And if you can poke fun at yourself you
are in great shape.